Hello newsletter readers,

In the month of March, NCMM has been busy showcasing the various ways transit agencies and mobility managers across the country have answered the call in their communities to get citizens vaccinated when and where they need it. Our webinar series on public health and transit partnerships for COVID-19 vaccinations has highlighted the ways that cross sector partnerships can be successful - in operations and future endeavors. The next webinar in the series, to be held April 7 (more details below), will be as enlightening as the previous two.

As states open up vaccination eligibility to more people, and as vaccine supply increases, transit agencies and mobility managers will continue to be a necessary driver in helping people become inoculated. Keep NCMM posted on new developments in your area and we'll continue to assist you as needed.

Stay well,

Kirby Wilhelm

(202) 489-6020

NCMM's COVID-19 Resource page is the place to find information focused on the role mobility managers can play in furthering COVID-19 vaccination efforts. You can access quick links to FTA and CDC COVID-19 resources, as well as view NCMM's frequently updated table presenting over 55 examples of transit agencies' involvement in local vaccination efforts. 

Of note, is the new Practical Vaccine Partnership Examples brief series, with two agency's experiences - Twin Transit of Washington & SPARTAN Transit Services of Texas - showcased in easily digestible one-page briefs. New briefs of highlighted agencies will be uploaded to the page after each of the webinars in the Mobilizing Transit and Public Health Partnerships for COVID-19 Vaccinations series.

NCMM's webinar series focused on public health and public transportation partnerships completed its second session yesterday, March 24. Panelists from the North Carolina Department of Transportation and Vermont Public Transportation Association discussed statewide vaccination coordination efforts between transit and public health. The archived webinar and associated resources are posted on the NCMM webinar page soon.

You can visit the first webinar and associated resources, featuring Twin Transit of Washington & SPARTAN Transit Services of Texas, here.

The next webinar in the series will be held April 7 at 12 p.m. ET. It will feature Flint MTA of Michigan and Nashua Transit of New Hampshire. You can register for the webinar here.

NCMM has released two new briefs in the Mobility Management in Practice Series - Framework to Develop a Continuum of Mobility Services and Cross Partnership Funding Models. 

The Framework to Develop a Continuum of Mobility Services brief explore how mobility management professionals can identify potential transportation services and funding sources in a continuum of mobility services to support the advancement of mobility systems. You can visit the brief here.

The Cross Partnership Funding Models brief researched and sourced national examples that support the ability of transit agencies, human service and non-transportation organizations to connect services across multiple types of funding source. You can visit the brief here. 

You can find these briefs and other Mobility Management in Practice Series briefs here.

Organizations take an important step toward coordination by exchanging data on transportation users, trips, and organizations' transportation services. For those data to be meaningful, the way they are reported needs to be standardized across organizations. NCMM is asking mobility management professionals and transit agencies to complete its Transportation Data Standards Survey. The survey gathers state and local transportation and human services stakeholders' input on collecting, reporting, sharing, and coordinating transportation-related data. Access the survey here.

Mobility management professionals will have a double-header Tuesday, Nov. 9, at this year's CTAA EXPO, which will be in person! In the morning, you are invited to a half-day Mobility Management Forum from 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The morning session will feature two panel presentations: one in which former NCMM grantees talk about the value human-centered design techniques have brought to their work, and the other in which practitioners discuss technological innovations in transportation. Register here.

In the afternoon, from 2:00 p.m to 5:00 p.m., mobility management practitioners will join other transportation professionals for an "unconference" on Mobility Innovation. For this session, the attendees drive the agenda-bringing forth issues they would like to learn and share with others in three fast-paced 50-minute sessions.

If you have suggestions for other presentations or workshop content, please email them to Amy Conrick.

Begin preparing now to showcase a poster of your work on the CTAA EXPO Trade Show Floor. The poster sessions give mobility management practitioners a chance to shine, sharing their innovative practices in an informal setting with all EXPO attendees. $500 scholarships will be provided to all accepted poster presenters. 

On Friday, March 26, 2021, at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time, FTA will host a National Peer Exchange on Vaccine Access. The virtual event will highlight how transit agencies are working to provide vaccine access to transit workers and their communities. Participants will include the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and state and local partners, including transit agency representatives.

This webinar hosted by ten various state and regional transit associations, to be held March 30 at 3 p.m. ET, will focus on the promising federal legislative and executive actions that will bring new policy and funding initiatives to transit agencies across the United States. Our panelists will cover topics such as the latest COVID-19 relief measure "The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021" - H.R.1319, an infrastructure package and other Administration and FTA plans, possible elimination of Congressional earmarks, and what to expect with the fall Surface Transportation Reauthorization changes. 

FTA funded eight Rides to Wellness demonstration projects in 2016 to identify and test promising, replicable public transportation healthcare access solutions that support increased access to healthcare, improved health outcomes, and reduced healthcare costs.

 

You can download the recently released program evaluation report here to learn more about the successes of the demonstration projects funded under the Rides to Wellness program. 

Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR) announced a Full Committee hearing titled, "The Administration's Priorities for Transportation Infrastructure." During this hearing, Committee Members will have an opportunity to discuss the Biden administration's priorities with Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, who is scheduled to appear virtually.

The hearing took place on Thursday, March 25, 2021 at 11a.m. EDT. The hearing will be archived through the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure's YouTube page.

The National Rural Transit Assistance Program (NRTAP), just announced their Community Rides Grant Program RFP. Current recipients and subrecipients of FTA's Formula Grants for Rural Areas (Section 5311) program have the opportunity to apply for these grants of up to $100,000 for projects that develop or strengthen transportation partnerships that improve social determinants of health in rural and tribal communities. The project duration is fifteen (15) months. FTA's Tribal Transit Program (TTP) grantees are also eligible, as TTP is a set-aside from the Section 5311 Rural program. For detailed information, download the Community Rides Grant Program Request for Proposals (RFP) here.

An informational webinar will be held April 15 at 2:00 p.m. ET. You can register here.

April 6 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern

N-CATT and CTE will discuss strategies and trends that can inform transit agencies seeking to convert to green energy.

 

April 14 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern

The ever-growing set of options for transit software systems can be difficult to navigate. To bring some clarity to the process, N-CATT, DemandTrans, and Civic Sphere will discuss strategies agencies can use while exploring new transit software systems, as well as other trends in transit software.

 

As part of continuing efforts to identify transportation access, usage and disparities that impact diverse groups, the National Aging and Disability Transportation Center (NADTC) has launched a national equity, diversity and inclusion transportation survey. The survey will gauge opinions and obtain information from a representative sample of racially, ethnically and culturally diverse older adults, people with disabilities and family caregivers about their experiences accessing and using local transportation options in the United States.

The CDC has released a $2.25B funding opportunity to address COVID-19 health disparities. Applicants will be awarded once in year one, and the grant has a two-year period of performance. Recipients are encouraged to develop partnerships and collaborate with key partners who have existing community or social service delivery programs for people with disabilities, elderly, African American, Hispanic, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Native American, or other racial and ethnic minority groups or people living in rural communities.

The Community Transportation Association of America's (CTAA) 2021 EXPO to originally take place in Richmond, Virginia on June 14-17 has been rescheduled for Nov. 7-11, 2021. All already purchased registrations will be honored for the new dates. In this upcoming EXPO, a variety of training sessions will be offered, as well as the popular trade show event - showcasing the latest community transportation goods and services.

This beaver wandered into and shut down a Toronto subway station for a few hours.  

Watch the rescue mission here.

Send your transportation photos, videos, and infographics to the NCMM at [email protected]. 

Mobility Management News is the newsletter of the National Center for Mobility Management (NCMM), which is operated jointly by the Community Transportation Association, the American Public Transportation Association and Easter Seals under a cooperative agreement with the Federal Transit Administration.